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This newsletter was sent by email to cos.place Newsletter subscribers on March 29th, 2026. Subscribe here.

wazzup!

Hi!
You’re receiving this because you filled out one of our cosplay surveys or signed up through our website, where you could leave your contact details - including your email address.
Through this newsletter, we update you on our progress in creating a dedicated social media platform for cosplay - cos.place!
If this is the first newsletter you see, you can catch up with our previous issues by clicking this link.

If you’d like to opt out of getting further updates related to our work on cos.place, you can do so by clicking here.

Here’s what happened since our last meeting:

In total, over 320 people have signed up for cos.place!
In total, over 300 people follow our social media!
Over 50 people have joined our Discord server (cos.place/discord)!
Cosmo and the cosplayer @martycipher have joined forces in our latest guide on spotting AI “cosplayers”!

[ Instagram: sutadori_works ]

on bread and water

Four newsletters ago (specifically, the Feb 1st issue, which you can read here), we reached a scandalous conclusion - cosplay is an incredibly expensive hobby with a high entry threshold. Shocking, we know! If that shocked you, buckle up now: things aren’t much brighter on the other side of the coin.

In our 2025 surveys, we asked over 250 cosplayers, among other things, about their attempts to monetize cosplay. Among them:

66% want to earn extra money from cosplay.
46% want to make a living entirely from cosplay.
26% use additional platforms for earning purposes.
8% of them are satisfied with their earnings on these platforms.

We then asked those who hadn’t yet explored monetization options about their specific reasons:

72% believe no one would be willing to support them.
60% believe earnings would be too low anyway.
36% believe taxes and running a business would overwhelm them.
28% believe they wouldn’t know how to start.
20% point to other reasons:

lack of time / other priorities
excessively high platform fees
feeling of insufficient recognition

So, is the ultimate fate of most cosplayers - regardless of their stage of life - a life of instant noodles and frozen meals?

[ Instagram: @zs_flufla ]

hard work, hard cash

We believe that there’s a different way, perhaps even a better one. After all, the digital age has given rise to a whole generation of digital artists, YouTubers, and streamers who make a living entirely from their passions. It is not a matter of luck, but rather years of creation and the evolution of ecosystems and processes that allow them to do so.

In the world of marketing and sales, there is a concept of a “sales funnel”, which refers to the path a potential buyer of a product or service must take: from the initial contact all the way to purchasing. In practice, one rule applies - the fewer steps, the better. This is because with each step, the potential buyer loses patience, willingness, or simply changes their mind.

Let’s take a breather together and break down how many steps a person who wants to support us must take. We will skip the so-called TOFU, the very top of the funnel, the stage where our content is viewed by complete strangers.

Let’s assume I am a cosplayer, whose largest platform is Instagram:

A supporter decides to support us.
The platform doesn’t allow links in post descriptions (except for ads), so the supporter must visit our profile and find our links.
Most cosplayers promote on multiple platforms - more than Instagram allows for links. Therefore, the supporter must visit and navigate our link tree (services like LinkTree, Beacons).
From the link tree, the supporter must find the platform I am currently using to receive support - Ko-fi, Patronite, or Throne.
If they do not have an account on that service, they must create one.
If they are just creating an account, they must also add their payment information.
Only now does the supporter have the option(!) to support us financially.

Simply put: it is a very long road.
We must be aware that at step 1, only about ~3% of our followers might decide to take action - and that is if our community is engaged. With each subsequent step, we can assume that the number of willing supporters drops by half. After seven steps, our 3% becomes a mere 0.047%. For every 10,000 fans, with any luck, between 5 and 20 people will actually support us. Now all we have to do is pray for good winds!

On cos.place, the supporter journey is significantly shortened. Thanks to built-in creator support systems, our patron bypasses steps 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6! Comparing this to our model (assuming, of course, that our community brings its fans along and cos.place achieves similar engagement 🤞🤞), the worst-case scenario rises from 0.047% to 1.5%, and 5-20 supporters becomes 150-200. That is a 30x better result! It might sound like black magic, but it is just the power of statistics.

Let's return for a moment to the support systems themselves. In 2025, we asked our respondents how they rate our proposed forms of support:

Small donations under a post

68% positive
27% neutral
5% negative

Subscriptions

65% positive
28% neutral
7% negative

Crowdfunding

57% positive
35% neutral
8% negative

Premium content

46% positive
40% neutral
13% negative

We believe that by making it as easy as possible for fans to support creators, we will make it easier for cosplayers to make a living from their hobby.

The support system on cos.place will:

Allow fans to support creators through direct donations under a post.
The value of the donation will be split equally among co-creators - including models and photographers.
Allow creators to create and share crowdfunding campaigns on their profiles.
Allow fans to subscribe to their favorite creators via different tiers.
Give creators the option of posting content as paid. Premium content will be visible in a separate tab and available as a subscription or PPV, depending on the creator.
Give creators the ability to reward their loyal fans with pins, emotes, or decorations.
Motivate fans to support through gamification.
Allow for support without the need to create an account.

We hope that these measures will ensure that everyone has the opportunity to earn a decent living. The support systems, as well as the entire platform, will constantly evolve alongside the needs of our community. If you have any advice or suggestions on what we can do better, be sure to let us know at contact@cos.place or on our Discord server!

[ Instagram: @rysiemawe ]

what’s next?

In the next few days, we will publicly announce the rules of our first contest: “cosmos everywhere”! As part of the contest, we will be collecting illustrations of Cosmo dressed as your favorite fictional characters. We officially start collecting works on April 1st, so you, our dear cos.pals, have three days of leeway. Just don’t waste them on nonsense! If this contest sparks your interest, we plan to organize a cosplay contest (also online) with a similar theme. Due to Cosmo's complex design, the duration of this contest will be much longer, and the prize pool much larger!

Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Do you have any questions, suggestions, or maybe you want to talk about the project or send us Cosmo fanart?
Write to us on our social media listed below, or send a message to contact@cos.place!

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